We LOVE Our Pets!
January Study: PETS
As I've previously mentioned, it is important to me as an educator to provide the students with learning opportunities that incorporate the world around them. I want them to be able to go home and apply the lessons from school to their day-to-day lives or to have relevant conversations with family members about the topic. In that spirit, we decided to do the pet study for January!
We set up the dramatic play center to mimic a veterinary clinic and pet shop. There was a waiting room with all kinds of animals; birds, snakes, hamsters, dogs, and cats. Students were able to write down the pets name and diagnosis, use a variety of tools to care for them, and shop for supplies such as leashes & collars, as well as toys and treats. The students loved this center and we loved watching the ways their imagination blossomed and how they were applying what we talked about to their play.
Other centers also focused on our study. We had animal puzzles, allowed students to explore the concept of weight with a scale and dog treats, encouraged students to sort characteristics of pets based on photos (number of legs, fur vs. feathers, etc), and they counted treats as they used tweezers to feed different animals. Our sensory table was filled with bird seed, feathers, nests, and lowercase letters they needed to match to uppercase letters on the wall.
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| Wright is using magnet puzzles to create mixed up creatures! |
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| James is taking great care of his dog in the dramatic play center! |
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| Harmoni and KJ are using magnet tiles to build homes for their pets! |
We spent quite a bit of time talking about what makes a good pet and had lots of good discussions about the differences between wild animals and pets. And while many of them wanted to keep sharks in their bathtubs, we finally settled on the consensus that pets are animals that we can take care of in our home. We talked about characteristics of different pets, such as paws, whiskers, and fins and how each of these parts help the pets. We listened to different animal sounds and brainstormed what those different sounds might mean. For example, if a dog is growling, what might they be trying to tell you? Lastly, we talked about how to take care of our pets. Yes, they are fun to play with, but they are a very big responsibility and we need to help our families make sure that our pets are fed, have fresh water, and have opportunities to play. At my house, our Kindergartener is in charge of getting the food for our dog each day; we have a cup with lines marked on it and keep it in the windowsill so he can take care of it without our help. If you have pets at home, I highly encourage finding ways for your child to be a regular part of caring for them.
Lastly, I know most of them have shared this with you, but we got our own classroom pet! One of the great things about Frankie Lemmon is that we always have the resources available to make our learning very real and hands-on and because of that we are the proud owners of a beta fish! I didn't tell them that we were getting a fish and instead waited for them to notice it as they arrived. They were so excited! We made sure we taught them about how to act around the tank and the ways that we will need to take care of our fish. The students came up with a list of names and I put them out to my acquaintances on social media to vote on. Without further ado, meet our fish Gru! He is the most loved little fish you will ever meet.
I encourage you to continue talking about pets with your child at home! There are lots of great episodes and games about pets on www.pbskids.org. Go to your local library and maybe check out a book on a pet that might be unusual to you; we had books about snakes and hedgehogs in our library this month! Lastly, if you are considering getting a pet, the Wake County Animal Center is bursting at the seams with dogs and cats that are desperate for a new home. We spent one morning looking at all the cute furry friends and picking out which ones we wanted to bring home. You can see them all here: https://www.wake.gov/departments-government/animal-services
We continue to move full-steam ahead with learning our letters and sounds! The Letterland curriculum is a great tool that helps the students to match a character to the letter and uses a gesture to help them remember the sound. I have included the stories and songs for each letter we have learned up to this point.
If you are wondering how you can help teach the letters at home, here is a practical, quick list of ideas: https://www.readingrockets.org/topics/phonics-and-decoding/articles/letters-and-sounds-practical-ideas-parents
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